''Fundulus'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

ray-finned fish Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fish or actinopterygians, is a class of bony fish that comprise over 50% of living vertebrate species. They are so called because of their lightly built fins made of webbings of sk ...

es in the superfamily Funduloidea,

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Fundulidae Fundulidae is the family of topminnows and North American killifishes. Distribution The 46 species are native to North America as far south as Yucatan, and to the islands of Bermuda and Cuba, occurring in both freshwater and marine environment ...

(of which it is the

type genus In biological taxonomy, the type genus (''genus typica'') is the genus which defines a biological family and the root of the family name. Zoological nomenclature According to the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, "The name-bearin ...

). It belongs to the

order Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * A socio-political or established or existing order, e.g. World order, Ancien Regime, Pax Britannica * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood ...

of toothcarps (Cyprinodontiformes), and therein the large suborder

Cyprinodontoidei Cyprinodontoidei is a suborder of fishes, one of the two suborders in the order Cyprinodontiformes. The Cyprinodontoidei consists of eleven families which are found in the Americas, the Mediterranean and in Africa, including Madagascar. Classi ...

. Most of its closest living relatives are egg-laying, with the notable exception of the splitfin livebearers (

Goodeidae Goodeidae is a family of teleost fish endemic to Mexico and some areas of the United States. Many species are known as splitfins. This family contains about 50 species within 18 Genus, genera. The family is named after ichthyologist George Brow ...

). They are usually smallish; most species reaching a length of at most 4 in (10 cm) when fully grown. However, a few larger species exist, with the giant killifish ('' F. grandissimus'') and the northern studfish ('' F. catenatus'') growing to twice the genus' average size. Many of the 40-odd species are commonly known by the highly ambiguous name "

killifish A killifish is any of various oviparous (egg-laying) cyprinodontiform fish, including families Aplocheilidae, Pantanodontidae, Cyprinodontidae, Fundulidae, Nothobranchiidae, Profundulidae, Aphaniidae and Valenciidae. All together, there ar ...

" (the general term for egg-laying toothcarps), or the somewhat less ambiguous " topminnow" (a catch-all term for Fundulidae). "Studfish" is a quite unequivocal vernacular name applied to some other ''Fundulus'' species; it is not usually used to refer to the genus as a whole. ''Fundulus'' have evolved to occupy a wide range of

aquatic ecosystem An aquatic ecosystem is an ecosystem found in and around a body of water, in contrast to land-based terrestrial ecosystems. Aquatic ecosystems contain communities of organisms—aquatic life—that are dependent on each other and on their environ ...

s, including marine, estuarine, and freshwater, making it a good comparative model system for studying evolutionary divergence between marine and freshwater environments. To assist with this research, Oxford Nanopore long-read reference genomes have been sequenced for ''F. xenicus, F. catenatus, F. nottii'', and '' F. olivaceus'.''

Species

There are currently 39 recognized species in this genus: * ''

Fundulus albolineatus The whiteline topminnow, ''Fundulus albolineatus'', was a type of killifish first identified in 1891. It was endemic to Big Spring, Madison County, Alabama Madison County is a County (United States), county located in the north central p ...

'' C. H. Gilbert, 1891 (

Whiteline topminnow The whiteline topminnow, ''Fundulus albolineatus'', was a type of killifish first identified in 1891. It was endemic to Big Spring, Madison County, Alabama Madison County is a County (United States), county located in the north central p ...

(

extinct Extinction is the termination of an organism by the death of its Endling, last member. A taxon may become Functional extinction, functionally extinct before the death of its last member if it loses the capacity to Reproduction, reproduce and ...

)) * ''

Fundulus bermudae The Bermuda killifish (''Fundulus bermudae'') is a small fish which is endemic to the islands of Bermuda in the western Atlantic Ocean. It belongs to the genus ''Fundulus'' in the killifish and topminnow family, Fundulidae. It can grow up to ...

'' Günther, 1874 (Bermuda killifish) * ''

Fundulus bifax The stippled studfish (''Fundulus bifax'') is a small freshwater fish which is endemic to the Tallapoosa River system in Georgia and Alabama, USA; and Sofkahatchee Creek (lower Coosa River system) in Alabama. It belongs to the genus ''Fundulus' ...

'' Cashner & Rogers, 1988 (Stippled studfish) * '' Fundulus blairae'' Wiley & D. D. Hall, 1975 (Western starhead topminnow) * ''

Fundulus catenatus ''Fundulus'' is a genus of ray-finned fishes in the superfamily Funduloidea, family Fundulidae (of which it is the type genus). It belongs to the order of toothcarps (Cyprinodontiformes), and therein the large suborder Cyprinodontoidei. Most ...

'' ( D. H. Storer, 1846) (Northern studfish) * '' Fundulus chrysotus'' ( Günther, 1866) ( Golden topminnow) * '' Fundulus cingulatus''

Valenciennes Valenciennes (, also , , ; ; or ; ) is a communes of France, commune in the Nord (French department), Nord Departments of France, department, Hauts-de-France, France. It lies on the Scheldt () river. Although the city and region experienced ...

, 1846 (Banded topminnow) * '' Fundulus confluentus'' Goode & T. H. Bean, 1879 (Marsh killifish) * '' Fundulus diaphanus'' (Lesueur, 1817) ** ''Fundulus diaphanus diaphanus'' ( Lesueur, 1817) (Banded killifish) ** ''Fundulus diaphanus menona'' D. S. Jordan & Copeland, 1877 * '' Fundulus dispar'' (

Agassiz Jean Louis Rodolphe Agassiz ( ; ) FRS (For) FRSE (May 28, 1807 – December 14, 1873) was a Swiss-born American biologist and geologist who is recognized as a scholar of Earth's natural history. Spending his early life in Switzerland, he recei ...

, 1854) (Starhead topminnow) * '' Fundulus escambiae'' ( Bollman, 1887) (Russetfin topminnow) * '' Fundulus euryzonus'' Suttkus & Cashner, 1981 (Broadstripe topminnow) * '' Fundulus grandis'' S. F. Baird & Girard, 1853 (Gulf killifish) * ''

Fundulus grandissimus ''Fundulus'' is a genus of ray-finned fishes in the superfamily Funduloidea, family Fundulidae (of which it is the type genus). It belongs to the order of toothcarps (Cyprinodontiformes), and therein the large suborder Cyprinodontoidei. Most ...

'' C. L. Hubbs, 1936 (Giant killifish) * ''

Fundulus heteroclitus The mummichog (''Fundulus heteroclitus'') is a small killifish found along the Atlantic coast of the United States and Canada. Also known as Atlantic killifish, mummies, gudgeons, and mud minnows, these fish inhabit brackish and coastal waters i ...

'' (Linnaeus, 1766) ** ''Fundulus heteroclitus heteroclitus'' (

Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné,#Blunt, Blunt (2004), p. 171. was a Swedish biologist and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the modern system of naming o ...

, 1766) (Mummichog) ** ''Fundulus heteroclitus macrolepidotus'' ( Walbaum, 1792) * '' Fundulus jenkinsi'' ( Evermann, 1892) (Saltmarsh topminnow) * '' Fundulus julisia'' J. D. Williams & Etnier, 1982 (Barrens topminnow) * '' Fundulus kansae''

Garman Garman is a surname or first name. Notable people with the name include: Sports * Ann Garman, All-American Girls Professional Baseball League player * Judi Garman (born 1954), American softball coach * Mike Garman (born 1949), American baseball pla ...

, 1895 (Northern plains killifish) * '' Fundulus lima'' Vaillant, 1894 * '' Fundulus lineolatus'' (

, 1854) (Lined topminnow) * '' Fundulus luciae'' ( S. F. Baird, 1855) (Spotfin killifish) * '' Fundulus majalis'' ( Walbaum, 1792) (Striped killifish, Striped mummichog) * '' Fundulus notatus'' (

Rafinesque Constantine Samuel Rafinesque-Schmaltz (; 22 October 178318 September 1840) was a French early 19th-century polymath born near Constantinople in the Ottoman Empire and self-educated in France. He traveled as a young man in the United States, ult ...

, 1820) ( Blackstripe topminnow) * ''

Fundulus nottii ''Fundulus nottii'', the bayou topminnow or southern starhead topminnow, is a fish of the family Fundulidae found in the southeastern United States. Description It is a small topminnow with a sub-ocular teardrop, a terminal to superior mouth ...

'' (

, 1854) (Bayou topminnow) * ''

Fundulus olivaceus The blackspotted topminnow, ''Fundulus olivaceus'', is a species of fish in the family Fundulidae: the topminnows and North American killifishes.Froese, R. and D. Pauly, Eds''Fundulus olivaceus''.FishBase. 2011. It is native to the south-central ...

'' ( D. H. Storer, 1845) (Blackspotted topminnow) * '' Fundulus parvipinnis'' Girard, 1854 (California killifish) * '' Fundulus persimilis'' R. R. Miller, 1955 (Yucatán killifish) * '' Fundulus philpisteri'' García-Ramírez, Contreras-Balderas & Lozano-Vilano, 2007 * '' Fundulus pulvereus'' ( Evermann, 1892) (Bayou killifish) * '' Fundulus rathbuni'' D. S. Jordan &

Meek Meekness is an attribute of human nature and behavior that has been defined as an amalgam of righteousness, inner humility, and patience. Meekness has been contrasted with humility alone insomuch as humility simply refers to an attitude towards o ...

, 1889 (Speckled killifish) * '' Fundulus relictus''

Able Able may refer to: * Able (1920 automobile), a small French cyclecar * Able (rocket stage), an upper stage for Vanguard, Atlas, and Thor rockets * Able (surname) * ABLE account, a U.S. savings plan for people with disabilities * Able UK, British s ...

& Felley, 1988 (Lover's Lake killifish) * '' Fundulus rubrifrons'' ( D. S. Jordan, 1880) (Redface topminnow) * ''

Fundulus saguanus ''Fundulus'' is a genus of ray-finned fishes in the superfamily Funduloidea, family Fundulidae (of which it is the type genus). It belongs to the order of toothcarps (Cyprinodontiformes), and therein the large suborder Cyprinodontoidei. Most o ...

'' Rivas, 1948 * '' Fundulus sciadicus''

Cope A cope ( ("rain coat") or ("cape")) is a liturgical long mantle or cloak, open at the front and fastened at the breast with a band or clasp. It may be of any liturgical colour. A cope may be worn by any rank of the Catholic or Anglican clerg ...

, 1865 (Plains topminnow) * '' Fundulus seminolis'' Girard, 1859 (Seminole killifish) * '' Fundulus similis'' ( S. F. Baird & Girard, 1853) (Longnose killifish) * '' Fundulus stellifer'' ( D. S. Jordan, 1877) (Southern studfish) * '' Fundulus waccamensis'' C. L. Hubbs & Raney, 1946 (Waccamaw killifish) * '' Fundulus xenicus'' Jordan & Gilbert, 1882 (Diamond killifish) * '' Fundulus zebrinus'' D. S. Jordan & C. H. Gilbert, 1883 (Plains killifish) The following fossil species are also known: * †'' Fundulus curryi'' R. R. Miller, 1945 -

Late Miocene The Late Miocene (also known as Upper Miocene) is a sub-epoch of the Miocene epoch (geology), Epoch made up of two faunal stage, stages. The Tortonian and Messinian stages comprise the Late Miocene sub-epoch, which lasted from 11.63 Ma (million ye ...

Early Pliocene Early may refer to: Places in the United States * Early, Iowa, a city * Early, Texas, a city * Early Branch, a stream in Missouri * Early County, Georgia * Fort Early, Georgia, an early 19th century fort Music * Early B, stage name of Jamaican d ...

Death Valley Death Valley is a desert valley in Eastern California, in the northern Mojave Desert, bordering the Great Basin Desert. It is thought to be the Highest temperature recorded on Earth, hottest place on Earth during summer. Death Valley's Badwat ...

, California * †'' Fundulus lariversi'' Abers & Stewart 1972 - Early/Middle Miocene of Nevada * † ''Fundulus'' ''davidae'' R. R. Miller, 1945 - Late Miocene/Early Pliocene of Death Valley, California * †'' Fundulus detillae'' Hibbard & Dunkle, 1942 - Middle Pliocene of Kansas ( Ogallala Formation) * † ''Fundulus'' ''eulepis'' R. R. Miller, 1945 - Late Miocene/Early Pliocene of Death Valley, California * †'' Fundulus nevadensis'' ( Eastman, 1917) - Late Miocene of Nevada ( Truckee Formation) (=''Parafundulus'') The Cuban killifish ('' Cubanichthys cubensis'', a

pupfish Pupfish are a group of small killifish belonging to ten genera of the family Cyprinodontidae of ray-finned fish. Pupfish are especially noted for being found in extreme and isolated situations. They are primarily found in North America, South Am ...

) was formerly placed in ''Fundulus''.

References

{{Authority control Freshwater fish genera Fundulidae Taxa named by Bernard Germain de Lacépède